Value, as a driver to achieving transformation in the construction industry, and in particular considering value beyond the capital phase of construction and infrastructure projects, was the message from Keith Waller, programme director of the Construction Innovation Hub (CIH), in delivering the JCT Povey Lecture on Thursday, 25 November 2021.
Value is one of the core themes of the CIH’s transformation programme, whose mission is to ‘create better outcomes for current and future generations by driving the adoption of manufacturing and digital approaches that improve the delivery, resilience and performance of infrastructure’.
Their Value Toolkit is developed to assist both public and private-sector clients and service providers who are seeking to maximise long-term potential benefits in developing their projects. It considers value way beyond cost, and instead focuses on the whole-life value of an asset from a social, economic and environmental standpoint.
The Toolkit organises value outcomes into four central areas, Produced, Natural, Social, and Human. It enables the project team to prioritise the long-term whole-life value gains depending on each project’s unique requirements.
Keith Waller, said:
“We spend around £65bn a year on our economic and social infrastructure.
“With such a huge level of level of investment, the question we should be asking is not how cheap can I buy it, and how much risk can I transfer to the supply chain. We should be asking how can we lever this investment to deliver the greatest social, economic, and environmental value?
“This means looking beyond the project. Looking beyond that capital phase of delivery, and consider not just what it is, but what it enables. How does it support productive growth in our economy? How does it enhance biodiversity and deliver greater social value? How does it support a path being driven towards net Zero, and so on.”
The JCT Povey Lecture 2021 was presented as a live, interactive webinar, hosted by JCT chair, Karen Kirkham. The presentation also featured a Q&A session where audience participants could submit questions through the webinar interface.
The full presentation of the JCT Povey Lecture 2021 is available via the JCT website at https://corporate.jctltd.co.uk/jct-povey-lecture-2021, or via JCT’s YouTube channel.
About Keith Waller
In addition to his role with the Construction Innovation Hub, Keith Waller is a Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers and has been involved in construction and infrastructure projects for over 30 years, leading many major projects in both the UK and overseas.
In 2010, Keith was seconded into government with Infrastructure UK (the predecessor to the Infrastructure and Projects Authority). A keen advocate of driving innovative and productive solutions, his work in government led to the publication of the UK’s first National Infrastructure Plan, Infrastructure Carbon Review, the development of the Infrastructure Cost Review and the IPA’s Transforming Infrastructure Performance programme, published in 2017.
Keith is also a member of the Construction Leadership Council, chairing the Manufacturing and Performance work stream.
About the JCT Povey Lecture
The JCT Povey Lecture is an annual event at which an eminent person is invited to give their thoughts on significant matters that are relevant to the construction and property industry. The purpose of the lecture is to stimulate thought and encourage ways of continuing to improve the quality and value of construction output.
The event was inaugurated in 2003 to acknowledge and pay tribute to Philip Povey, who served JCT for fifty years.